SF Giants minor league notes: Drew Cavanaugh, Jack Choate, and Jacob Bresnahan

The minor league season is fully underway. There have been some promising trends for the SF Giants, including Drew Cavanaugh's hot start, Jack Choate's strikeout rate, and Jacob Bresnahan's strong outing.

SF Giants minor league notes: Drew Cavanaugh, Jack Choate, and Jacob Bresnahan

Drew Cavanaugh's hot start

The Giants were likely a little too conservative with young backstop Drew Cavanaugh returning to San Jose. He put up a .697 OPS in 154 plate appearances last season, and even saw a bit of time with the Sacramento River Cats, as the organization ran out of catching depth in the upper minors.

Cavanaugh looks to be above the California League competition this season. The left-handed bat is slashing .291/.414/.600 (158 wRC+) with four home runs, 13 RBI, and 16 runs in 70 plate appearances. As his 18.6 percent walk rate would suggest, there is not a ton of chase in his approach, and that has been on display in a league where many pitchers have not refined their control yet.

Jack Choate's strikeout rate

The Giants have quite a few pitchers who can tally high strikeout totals, such as Kyle Harrison and Carson Whisenhunt. Who has the highest rate among pitchers with at least 10 innings pitched? That would be Jack Choate.

The left-handed pitcher has a huge 15.7 K/9 rate to go along with a 3.77 ERA through 14.1 frames with the Richmond Flying Squirrels. Choate does not have the type of velocity you would typically associate with high strikeout numbers. He relies more on deception, with a low three-quarters arm slot and crossfire delivery. His delivery starts on the right side of the pitching mound, but the ball is released well to the left of the mound.

The 24-year-old pitcher flashes a low-90's sinker that plays up due to his deceptive release point and above-average extension. He pairs this with a changeup that misses quite a few bats, and a sweeper that gets a lot of horizontal break. Choate has a better feel for his changeup, and his control with the sweeper remains a work in progress.

Jacob Bresnahan's strong outing

The Giants acquired lefty prospect Jacob Bresnahan in the trade that sent Alex Cobb to the Cleveland Guardians. He was selected in the 13th round of the 2023 draft out of Sumner High School (Washington), but received a $375,000 signing bonus to sway him from his college commitment.

Overall, it has been a rough start to Bresnahan's stint with the Giants, as he tallied a 10.98 ERA in seven outings with the San Jose Giants last year. He has followed that up with a 5.63 ERA in four starts with San Jose this season.

The results have not matched the stuff yet, but that could be changing soon. The 19-year-old pitcher completed five scoreless frames with zero walks and eight strikeouts in a 2-1 win over the Fresno Grizzlies on Saturday. He has a loose delivery from the left side with a mid-90s fastball that gets in an opposing hitters quicky. He mixes in a fading changeup and a sweeper, but the control remains a work in progress. The Giants hope that his strong start is part of a larger step forward.